17th February 2023
| Mark Frost
With the support of Chance to Shine*, Cricket Wales has been setting up several Street Cricket projects to focus on young people who have less opportunities to play cricket either by living in under-served communities or are from an ethnically diverse community. Butetown is one of the latest which recently had the honour of a Ministerial visit!
Mojeid Ilyas, the Cricket Wales’ Diversity officer in SE Wales said that: ”We know that Street can have a positive impact on children’s physical, personal, social and mental well-being and Street is a really exciting non-traditional form of the game.
It is also creating amazing opportunities for young people to enjoy cricket and also offer as an alternative ‘pathway’ for non-mainstream cricket across gender, ethnicity and location.”
On Sunday 12th February the Minister for the Economy Vaughan Gething, not only paid a visit but picked up a bat to show his skills which were put to the test with some enthusiastic bowling, vying for a prize wicket! 35 young people enjoyed a full two hours session most of which are not members of a cricket club.
“Cricket is aiming to be the most inclusive sport around,” said Mark White Area Manager for SE Wales “but we know that the top end of the sport isn’t yet representative of the people that play at the grassroots.”
“Having the Minister arrive today and roll his sleeves up shows the commitment of the Welsh Government to support sports to be as equitable and diverse as possible and we have been thrilled with the success of seven Street hubs that have been set up so far underway in Cardiff & Newport, with the balance of remaining projects likely to be rolled out in the West first (2 in Easter and 2 after in the summer term) and then the North (April onwards).”
*Chance to Shine, primarily through the generosity of a Trust / Foundation, has committed to funding 15 hubs in Wales.
For more infformatin about Street Cricket click here